Well completion equipment is used in a variety of well related applications. For example, artificial lift systems are used to produce fluids, such as hydrocarbon based fluids, from subterranean reservoirs. One type of artificial lift system is an electric submersible pumping system in which a submersible motor drives a submersible pump to produce well fluid to a desired location.
The submersible motor often contains an internal motor fluid that is protected from the surrounding well fluid. Additionally, the submersible motor is exposed to substantial differential pressures between its interior and the surrounding environment during movement downhole and during operation downhole. Accordingly, a motor protector can be coupled to the submersible motor to protect the motor from deleterious wellbore fluids while balancing undue pressure differentials.
Many types of motor protectors have been designed for incorporation into electric submersible pumping systems. The motor protectors typically comprise one or more sections that enable conformation to reduce differential pressure while maintaining a barrier between the internal motor fluid and the surrounding wellbore fluid. However, each of the types of available motor protectors can be problematic due to characteristics such as high production cost, high material cost, inability to operate in high temperature environments, undue resistance to pressure balancing, susceptibility to damage caused by contaminants in the well fluid, and susceptibility to damage due to accumulation of material depositions over time.